Alpine Mermaid
by Caliburnxxx
Summary: Excerpt: My body was sprawled all over it, my arms clutching it so tightly they turned numb. I cried, I sobbed, I shouted for all the world could hear; my muscles twitched gently and I gasped, my face went still like Ci did …


The grass dew of spring was cool on my back. Fresh air triggered my olfactory senses. I breathed in the Alpine air deeply, savouring it like the most magnificent eat-all-you-want buffet. On my right was a stream, so pristine and clear I could see every detail of those wonderful fishes. The evergreen trees lining the stream swayed along with a chilly wind that tingled my nerves. Even so, I felt warmth emanating from this very land. I cuddled up, and fell asleep almost immediately, like a child in bed.

My eyes opened. The orb at the distance was sinking in to a sea of yellowish tangerine. Thud! I turned around in a heartbeat as panic fluttered within. But all I see was a field of serene beauty. Nature's beloved child, grass. _I can't breathe. I can't breathe. No, I can breathe. There's nobody here. Nature takes care of everyone. I can breathe. I can breathe._

I rubbed my eyes with my palms vigorously and ran all the way down to my very special monolith which was my best friend as it always would be. I collapsed onto it, sucking in air like a famished beggar on the streets. My body was sprawled all over it, my arms clutching it so tightly they turned numb. I cried, I sobbed, I shouted for all the world could hear; my muscles twitched gently and I gasped, my face went still like Ci did …

_A wooden rod swished down. Upon contact, a dark red welt formed. I saw the very same seaweed. Again, like paper airplanes thrown into the sky only to drop back to Earth, hoped turned into desperation and desperation turned into sheer terror. Down the stick went again and again and again – _

No. No –

_The whole world turned into a blurry fierce vermillion as I rolled into a ball protecting my arms, my head. A shower of embers rained down on me… Stop! Stop! Stop … Suddenly I was thrown into a cloak of nothingness, bobbing here and there. Where am I? I hesitated travelling further inwards, my nerves aching. I finally decided to be courageous and inched towards the centre. Suddenly exhilaration overwhelmed me and I navigated my way around with delight. I burrowed deeper and harder into that sacred centre …_

Not that! No, no, not that!

_My eyelids uncovered my glassy grey eyes. And in return, they told me of a very gentle, kind pair of sky blue eyes that held something I would never have. They also told me of an oyster's shell which opened and closed in a very familiar pattern, a series of sequence I would never ever forget. Ciel! As he bent down and stretched out a hand, I saw a slim figure with billowing green strands of hair behind clutching a mallet, mouth snarling, with its fangs out, ready for its prey. No, Ciel, go away, run away … But it was only for silence to give way for the cherry blossoms sending my only pillar of support away, away where I would never see him again … again … again … Dread … Fear … Horror … Blood. That monster, that monster was grinning triumphantly. I lunged forward, hands clamped firmly against its windpipe – _

I sat up, face rigid and pale. _A life for a life._ _Does that mean nature killed many people and animals for grass, other animals, mountains and lakes? _Just as that thought flitted in, a roar rippled through the brim of those life sucking plants. _Sabre – _Blood seeped out of my eye sockets colouring my world red again but this time, _Ciel, Ciel has come to retrieve, to save me, to rescue me again … …_

**Ten Days Later**

The BBC News reporter Milano spoke vividly of an account so peculiar it attracted the attention of scientists and researchers globally. The story was of a young boy around the age of twelve almost being devoured by a supposedly extinct Sabre Tooth Tiger in the Swiss Alps found by a herdsman.

The herdsman was bringing his cattle 'to graze the grasses' when he saw the tiger leaping onto the boy. He then chased the tiger away with his high-voltage cattle prod. The boy was already dead but the weird thing was that the boy was grinning from ear to ear, in which according to the herdsman, he had that crazy smile even before the tiger pounced on him. The boy's eyes shone with pure euphoria. It looks as though he was entranced by something in particular. People say it was just a coincidence; others more imaginative said he was enthralled by mermaid-like creatures living in high altitudes. Or are there creatures from Swiss Folklore that evolved through the ages thriving in the mountains? Read on to find out what the local Swiss people thought happened and what the scientists and researchers could evaluate from the findings.

_An excerpt from an article in the magazine Folklore Reads Issue June_

Written by Rachel Loke


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